About

Art & Design from the quirky to sublime…

An actress for over three decades, a disabling condition – Limited Cutaneous Systemic Sclerosis (LcSSc) – and the respect that is now given to digital art have enabled me to travel in a different direction. I have always created art of one form or another but now I’m concentrating on Art and Design. (That’s not to say that if an ideal character came along that I was physically capable of performing, whether on stage or television, I wouldn’t leap at the chance – the bug never leaves you!)

This blog contains my ramblings on art, design, theatre, history, food, cinema and more, subjects I love. Whether you’re looking for something beautiful, quirky, modern, nostalgic or romantic, or perhaps just strikingly simple, First Night Design is just the ticket, with theatre-related designs a speciality.

I hope you enjoy reading my blog and I welcome your comments. Please bear in mind that I may not always be able to respond because of ill-health.

Update 5 January 2018: Towards the end of last year I was diagnosed with a second incurable autoimmune condition called Ulcerative Colitis as well as a Hiatus Hernia. Joy of joys!

“Sarah, your work takes on the look of the old masters. Good approach and well done!”Thank you, artist Skip Willits, for giving me such a beautiful compliment!

246 comments

A wonderful blog. Just found you. I moved to France this year for health reasons and started my blog. Finding my feet for that and how to manage my unwell days. I am looking forward to reading about your cards as I would love to create with my floral and landscape work. Photoshop installed but yet to fathom layers etc. I feel a little daunted by my new life. I think your posts will help give some inspiring support. Regards Judi

I hope they will help, Judi. I’ve come back to the UK and my health and I are missing Crete! I’m not posting so much these days for health reasons but there are lots of posts to look back to! I wish you luck and strength and thank you for such a lovely compliment!
Sarah

Well I wish you well and hope you can post when you feel you can. Health does come first and a bit of compromise. The weather in France is proving good for my asthma but the back problem an issue. So I think lots of blog reading and tea is the only solution! Regards for now. Judi

I’ve deleted it now because while I was able to read the whole article without a subscription, Beetley Pete told me he was having a problem. I clicked the link and had the same problem. Bloody irritating as it was a very interesting article that rather put paid to the notion that she didn’t say anything about contemporary wars and so on in her novels. Sorry to disappoint.

Dear Sarah, thank you so much for affording me the opportunity to connect with your most beautiful & delicate blog,it s very much appreciated,I look forward to reading your posts & sharing them,once again lovely to meet you…Pat Carroll, artinmanyforms

Hi, Sarah! Thanks so much for following my blog. I will reciprocate since I find yours very interesting. I love art and making things too, although I must be the world’s worst actress, in spite of being made to play all male roles at school, since I was the tallest in my class! I also suffer from a boring disease (Lyme) so I feel for you. Interesting that you live in Crete – should you ever feel like/have the time to do a short guest post for me about life/the theatre/the situation there, I would be delighted!
All the best, Marina

I feel for you suffering from Lyme’s. There are a lot of us decrepit people about on the internet, I’ve discovered! When I have a moment, I’d love to do a guest post for you. Thanks so much for the follow.

Dear Sarah, thank you for following my blog on art and it is a pleasure to meet you. I look forward to exploring your artwork and posts on theater. I was a theater major once myself– mainly I am fond of Shakespeare, Brecht, Ibsen, Strindberg, Chekov, O’Neil and Williams although I also love Caryl Churchill. Best, k

Don’t feel obligated to accept, but you have a wonderful blog and want to let others know they should check your work out 🙂 Dohttps://alexraphael.wordpress.com/2015/05/23/awards-three-of-a-different-kind/

Hi just stop by your beautiful blog! Thanks for the like on my blog! I love digital Art especially collages, I do myself all the collages on my website I love digital Art beside my jewelry, Please feel free to stop by…Right now I follow you!

Thank you finding my blog, I am starting to pick up and getting back to a little blogging today…The pain level that I have had has been intolerable I have not been able to think at all. Bone pain is worse than child birth I reckon..

Just catching up as I have my new computer in my hot little paws! I’m very honoured that you should have nominated me. In fact, I’ve become an award-free blog but I shall add your link to my Award Free page. Thanks again, Patrick.

Sarah, the more I read about you and the more of your writing I read, the more I find you a deeply interesting and dynamic woman. I think I shall have to come back continually to probe further and relish in the delight of your talents. Cheers to you!

Sarah, I’m trying to come up with a Christmas gift idea for my adult daughter–and thought of you. (The piece of yours I’m still planning on for myself is Manuscript, that intertwines writing and music.) My daughter is both a successful print journalist and (non professional) ballerina. Do you have anything in your cache of gems that you’d suggest? (Or maybe this sparks an idea for a new project! 🙂 )

Heather, that’s so sweet of you and thank you! I still need to do a post explaining why but I’ve become an award-free blog as I simply can’t keep up! When I do write said post, I will make sure I include a link to you and your site. My apologies.

I hate it when that happens and it has happened to me too many times – floating in the ocean with an inadequate rudder! No worries and reciprocating is not at all necessary. To me these are like gifts to bless others!

Thank you! Most of my work is what you might call collage in that I collect various images – my own or public domain – and meld them together. Some are done with painting or drawing software and some are a mix of the two methods. Various pieces end up being true collage while others I blend into a picture that stands on its own. I work digitally because of disability.

Hello again! I just wanted to say that I can’t thank you enough for re-blogging my stories, and for your wonderful, kind comments (such massive compliments, I was speechless). It means so much to get such huge encouragement and to know that you are enjoying reading them. Enormous Thanks. Take care. Rebecca

good eve, my dear,
i was updating some earlier-in-the-year posts and reading comments from my lovely readers. i came across our exchanges and wondered if i had followed up to see what your ‘about’ page said about your own health issues. i do deeply apologize for my shortcomings in this! I remember reading this but see i didn’t leave you a comment that i saw as i skimmed thru. Quite remiss of me! i am sure you felt my apparent lack of care. please forgive me my lack of cognitive functioning at times! Oy!

I hope you are doing well and enjoying life as we go into spring/summer. And i hope you are feeling well enough to do all that your heart desires. i want to catch up on the blogs i read now that i have time again… i look forward to reading your offerings of late. 😉

Hi Sarah!
Thanks for following my blog Tree at alivetree.wordpress.com
Wow…I’d love to have the talent and motivation to do art and spread beauty in the world through colors and visuals.
God Bless!
Paula

Hello Sarah. I just wanted to drop by and thank you for following my blog and wish you the best of luck in all your future blogging. I also wanted to mention that your artwork is very delicate and beautiful. Keep up the good work.

Forgive me for not yet replying to your lovely comments recently. I hope to do so over the next couple of days. I’m exhausted and my connection is being very irritating. In the meantime, I hope you have a relaxing and uplifting weekend!

Thank you so much for following my blog; I’ve just had the best time looking all over your blog. A lot of great things here, and I look forward to our connection here for a lot of art and creativity time.

Hi, Sarah! Thank you for following my blog! Yours is lovely. I enjoyed looking at the elegant, personal artwork. I wish you the best of luck with your condition and hope you continue to find joy in art 🙂 . Take care — Matt

Hi! Thank you so much for liking my stuff, you inspire me to continue on the path to light, following my flow, which has been rather blocked lately, also by self sabotage… Thank you for your beautiful art!

Thank you for recently following my blog. The best to you with your art, acting, writing and especially in your health. I hope you regain your health. I can totally relate to you on the health issues as I have some too that have limited me lately from doing more things I enjoy.

Bless your for your comments, Joyce. I’m unlikely to regain my health, alas, but as long as I can keep it in check, I’ll be happy! I hope you are able to deal with your problems and keep strong and positive. Thank you for visiting.

Thank you, also. It is my faith that helps keep me looking at the positive. It is easy to get down about health issues that linger on. It is harder to get up and keep going, but with God’s hep it can be done. That is our hope, in HIm. God bless you.

Hello! I so appreciate your following my “Randa Lane…” haiku blog! I could never create the exquisite art that is your gift and talent, but with my words I would hope that I do some good in the world. *smile* I would love it if you could comment from time to time, as comments help me do a better job. Finally, your site is just exquisite…a blessing for the eyes and for the heart!

Thanks so much for following my blog, Oh, the Places We See. It means a lot that someone as artistic as you would consider it worthy of your time. Thanks for joining the family! http://ohtheplaceswesee.com

Beautiful and delicious. I could lose myself here for days. Thank you for following Daytripper Sippers. I love how you see the world.
Similar to you, photography and waking up to my corner of Australia have become my peace. CC

Thank you so much for the follow you have bestowed on my blog, it is really appreciated and I am pleased to welcome you aboard. If you have any suggestions or requests just drop me a line. Now I better go and find more about your artistic life, MM 🍀

I’ve recently switched my food blog over to be self-hosted which I hope will make it more user-friendly in the future. As a result, if you were following Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen via email, WordPress, or using RSS feeds through Google Reader or some other way, you are no longer subscribed. If you wish to continue receiving future posts from my blog you will need to re-subscribe. Sorry for the inconvenience, Teresa.

Thank you for adding “The Poor Dog Had None! to your “Posts I Like” section. I am really pleased and flattered (and of course I have no idea how to do this on WordPress). I am enjoying your site no end.

I know it is the 12th of January, but I hope it is not too late to wish you a wonderful New Year. May 2013 bring you more happiness, love, and success. I would like to thank you because you continue following my blog. I hope my blog posts do not disappoint and that your visits in there have been a joyful ride. Thank you again, many blessings and much love to you. 🙂

These are gorgeous designs, and thanks for visiting my site. I have to say that I have made an error with your comment somehow and lost it, which is why it’s not up on my ‘Exposure’ post. Don’t be offended, I can be pretty rubbish with computers at times. Feel free to try again!

Bless you, Gabriella, for visiting and leaving a comment. Your compliment has made my day! As for computers, I can also be rubbish, even though I’ve been dealing with them for some years. I’m not in the least offended.

Hi, Sarah. Just finished reading a bit on your condition and it sounds extremely frustrating and, of course, potentially life threatening. Not only do we share autoimmune diseases (of different types) but we share the joy of Working with Photocrash, ah, I mean Photoshop :). I’m an amateur graphic artist and video creator, as well. I wish you well in your health and your efforts in the art world. You do wonderful work (I hate to call it work, when it’s so much fun).

Hello Kip (love that name!). Great to hear you use the word ‘frustrating’ rather than talk about pain or suffering or such. The frustration is certainly the worst aspect of these conditions. Bless you for your compliments, your following and caring and making me laugh about Photocrash. Yes, the word work, if you love what you do, is a complete misnomer. Take care. Sarah

Thanks for the props on the name. It came from a TV show back just before I was born about a child named Kip who was a Dennis the Menace type. I’ve lived up to it, too, lol. I always use the word frustration referring to my particular condition because there isn’t any real pain involved, there’s just a lot of numbness and dysfunctional body parts and systems. Suffering I reserve for those so destitute that it makes you want to cry just seeing their conditions. Oh, I’ve gone and rambled on in a comment again (another affliction of mine). Take care of you, Sarah. From Me. [8>])

So, perhaps this should be addressed to Sarah? I might have correctly deciphered your signature?
I agree with both you and Karen about the circus and I have already been accumulating circus ephemera for a Christmas project I have in mind for many of my friends!
BUT, please help me understand how you layer the images onto the circus poster – I am assuming it is Photoshop or Illustrator (neither do I own or truly understand)
Thanks,

Thank you for visiting, Mary. Yes, it’s Sarah here! And yes, it’s Photoshop. I cut out the images in PS and add them in layers to the background. Each layer can then be manipulated separately. The software enables you to create all sorts of different effects. To explain more would probably confuse you if you’re not au fait with PS. Have a look at my post Computer as Art Tool: https://firstnightdesign.wordpress.com/2011/10/24/the-computer-as-art-tool/